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Architecture

House Between Forest and Field in Dutchess County, New York, was designed by nARCHITECTS, the winner of this year's National Design Award for architecture.

Meet the Innovative Winners of This Year’s National Design Awards

Cooper Hewitt recognizes talented trailblazers who are at the forefront of their fields

Pienza's historic city center, which Pope Pius II redesigned in the 15th century, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This Italian Town Silenced a Historic Bell That Kept Tourists Awake. Now, Locals Can’t Sleep

The bell battle in Pienza, located in Tuscany, is just the latest example of Italy’s tourism troubles

Researchers found parts of the original church beneath the cathedral's quire.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover 900-Year-Old English Cathedral’s Hidden Medieval Crypt

The team also found the original foundations of Exeter Cathedral’s high altar, Roman-era structures and empty graves

The interior of Transfiguration Cathedral, the largest church building of Odesa, was damaged by a Russian missile that hit the altar on July 23.

Russian Strike Severely Damages Odesa’s Transfiguration Cathedral

Congregants sifted through the wreckage, clearing rubble and searching for artifacts

Minarets are built adjacent to mosques and used to call Muslims to prayer.

300-Year-Old Minaret Toppled to Make Way for Road Expansion in Iraq

Residents and cultural officials are dismayed by the city of Basra’s decision to demolish the structure

Dorothy Liebes (standing) had two studios in San Francisco before moving her business to New York City.

Women Who Shaped History

How the Mother of Modern Weaving Transformed the World of Design

Dorothy Liebes was committed to making quality textiles available to consumers of all classes

Crowds gather outside the front gate of the Acropolis.

The Acropolis Adopts Crowd Control Measures for the First Time

The increasingly popular tourist destination in Greece is becoming overwhelmed with tourists

Johann Baptist Schmitt, The Hermit in Flottbeck, 1795

Ornamental Hermits Were 18th-Century England’s Must-Have Garden Accessory

Wealthy landowners hired men who agreed to live in isolation on their estates for as long as seven years

A Fuller-style geodesic dome known as Weatherbreak is gradually rising 25 feet in the air in the Flag Hall of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History on the National Mall.

The Architectural Genius of the Geodesic Dome and the Challenge of Putting It All Back Together

A new exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History puts the engineering innovation back on display after decades in storage

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These Five Routes Help You Explore Germany’s Historic Cities Like a Local

Each of these off-the-beaten-track destinations offer up culture rich experiences, walkable neighborhoods and a quintessential slice of German life

Matisse's former apartment overlooks the French Riviera.

Henri Matisse’s Stunning Apartment Overlooking the French Riviera Is for Sale

The French artist spent his final years making art from his home in the city of Nice

One of the marble capitals found by swimmer Gideon Harris

Cool Finds

Swimmer Stumbles Upon 1,800-Year-Old Marble Columns From Shipwreck Off Israel’s Coast

The artifacts help settle an unanswered question about ancient architectural materials

The Indiana Statehouse, opened in 1888 and built—of course—with Indiana limestone.

Why Indiana Limestone Is One of America’s Most Prized Building Materials

From the 19th century to today, a geological trove offers a strong foundation for the nation’s cities

The new Richard Gilder Center at the American Museum of Natural History opens in New York City on May 4.

New York’s Natural History Museum Unveils a Canyon-Like New Wing

With butterflies, bugs and an atrium that looks like it’s carved into rock, the Gilder Center will open its doors to the public on May 4

The tightly stacked dwellings of Corippo are so close together they appear two-dimensional. 

How Alberghi Diffusi Turn Villages Into Hotels

Originating in Italy, “scattered hotels” turn alleyways into hallways and piazzas into living rooms

“It could take you a lifetime, or several lifetimes, to learn the history here,” says one member of the abbey staff. Left, the West Towers, completed in 1745.

Northern Europe and the British Isles

The Grand History of Westminster Abbey

The church’s many chambers and crypts hold the story of Britain’s past, present and future

A portrait of Minerva Parker Nichols

Women Who Shaped History

History Forgot Minerva Parker Nichols, the Country’s First Solo Woman Architect

A new exhibition celebrates the pioneering designer, who opened her own practice in the late 1880s

New York City's Flatiron Building is wedged between Fifth Avenue and Broadway.

New York City’s Iconic Flatiron Building Sells for $190 Million at Auction

The landmark hasn’t been up for public auction since the Great Depression, when it sold for $100,000

Rome's Pantheon was built around 27 B.C.E.

Rome’s Pantheon Will Start Charging an Entrance Fee

The 2,000-year-old structure is Italy’s most visited cultural site, attracting millions of tourists each year

An aerial view of the ongoing efforts to reconstruct Paris' Notre-Dame Cathedral, pictured in June 2021

Cool Finds

The 2019 Notre-Dame Fire Revealed Iron Staples Holding the Cathedral Together

The Paris landmark is the first known Gothic cathedral to use iron in this way, researchers say

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